The Red Bulls officially inked Ibrahim Salou today, and the big target man will be added to the roster upon receipt of his P-1 visa and ITC (International Transfer Certificate).

“Ibrahim is an athletic and physical forward who will immediately improve our team,” said GM and Sporting Director Erik Soler. “He was impressive during his time training with the team and we are excited to bring him on board.”

This is hardly a shocking move. Coach Hans Backe has been impressed with Salou, who started and played 67 minutes in Saturday’s 3-1 laugher over Santos FC in the Grand Opening of Red Bull Arena.

He started his career playing for German club TuS Wandsbek 81 in 1998, and two years later signed for FC Turnhout in Belgium, where he stayed for four seasons, scoring 29 goals in 50 appearances. He had 16 in 26 games during a productive 2003-04 season before inking with KV Kortrijk of the Belgian Second Division in 2004.

One season later, Salou moved to S.V. Zulte-Waregem in the Belgian First Division, scoring 14 goals _ including nine goals in 29 league appearances _ to help them win the 2006 Belgian Cup. He got signed by Club Brugge in 2006, one of the biggest clubs in the country. In two seasons there, he appeared in 46 Belgian First Division matches, scoring five goals and helping them take the 2007 Belgian Cup.

In 2008, he moved to MSV Duisburg of the German Second Division and later played for Vejle Boldklub of the Danish Superliga, before joining the Red Bulls. On a positive note, he has appeared to help his teams win, and watching him it’s easy to see why. He’s a big target man who excells in hold up play, which should not only let the midfielders get involved but should also facilitate for Designated Player and captain Juan Pablo Angel _ which, really, should be the goal. He’s the best forward in MLS history, so you should want to surround him with players that accentuate his abilities. Salou does that.

I assume many of you saw him Saturday bullying Santos, but here is a clip of an earlier goal, the 4th-best in the Belgian league that year according to this video…